Irish elections vulnerable to AI threat – McGahon

Future Irish elections will be targeted by malicious actors using artificial intelligence (AI) unless preventative measures are taken, a Fine Gael Senator has said.

Senator John McGahon from Louth, said AI has great potential, but in reality, it also poses a major threat to our democracy if left unchecked.

“We have seen what has occurred internationally in the past with elections and referendums targeted by advancing technology. It will be no different with the advent of AI,” he said.

Speaking after the news that the family of Michael Schumacher are pursuing a German Magazine for creating a fake AI interview, Senator McGahon said, “AI has real potential to reshape our economies by improving growth and productivity but at the same time poses a real danger to society if not countenanced.

“Tech moves at lightning speed and governments have been incredibly slow to try and check this new balance of power.

“The Cambridge Analytica scandal, where data from 50 million Facebook users was used to try and sway the outcome of the 2016 US Presidential election and the UK’s Brexit referendum in the same year, is an example of where governments failed through regulation to protect citizens against big tech.

“AI will be the next frontier where this could happen, it certainly is the future and it must be approached in a measured manner that ensures proper regulation and safeguards are included.

“Our own elections here are vulnerable to being targeted by those who have no regard for democracy. We cannot allow it to happen.

“The fake Michael Schumacher interview may seem trivial, but it is a small example of the danger posed by AI.

“It has ability to create credible deepfakes and present a financial risk and reputational damage to those targeted by it. All of this can be used to manipulate elections and undermine the credibility of our democratic institutions.

“There are credible concerns from scientists that AI could be used to create autonomous weapons, remove thousands of manual jobs alongside concerns about the security threats, the invasion of privacy and social grading.

“Time is of the essence here. There should be a taskforce established by leading governments and the European Union about how we are going to approach this.

“Meanwhile, while governments are figuring out what to do next, AI is still expanding at lightning speed,” concluded Senator McGahon.

ENDS